Question to Ask About Trophy Shipping Insurance(posted October - 2013)

By Tim Jones, Managing Editor

"One of the worst things that can happen to a hunter is to have his trophy destroyed in shipping." That's what Dwight van Brunt wrote in a follow-up report (8935) he sent us on a safari to Namibia. In Report 8299, van Brunt originally gave us the details on a 2012 hunt in the Caprivi Strip with Jamy Traut Hunting Safaris. This was van Brunt's 10th hunt with Traut, and he reported taking a hippo at close range, plus a crocodile that tried to "board the boat" after being shot twice on land. In his follow-up report van Brunt shared the troubles that developed when he shipped these trophies home:

"This summer, I received a crate containing both hippo and crocodile skulls. They apparently made it all the way from Africa and through customs intact, but somehow the crate was smashed between Seattle and Montana. The hippo skull survived - but the crocodile skull was destroyed. I learned several important things in the aftermath....